Essays by Former Students

Essay One Why I hate putting my children to bed As I sit here writing my paper, I wonder to myself, “Why won’t my brat children go to sleep?” I love my children more than anything but bedtime is my least favorite part of the day. I put them in bed at nine o’clock every evening. Every evening they act surprised that it is time to lay down. The three biggest reasons that I hate putting them to bed are that they always want juice right at bedtime, they always have to go to the potty right at bedtime, and both girls claim to never be tired at bedtime. I start out the process of getting my daughters to go to sleep by telling them it is time for bed. After several minutes of them running up and down the hallways screaming no, we make our way to their bedroom. When I say their bedroom I am talking strictly a room with two twin beds and a TV. There is not a whole lot to keep them entertained because their toys are in a separate room of the house. I take them into their room, tuck them in bed, turn off the light and shut the door. Once I put them in bed it takes about five to ten minutes for one of them to come out saying they are thirsty and need some juice. I usually always give them juice before bed, which is a mistake on my part because then they are constantly running to the bathroom during the night. Nevertheless, I usually fold and give in to their demands. After they drink their juice it is time for round two. I put them back in bed, tuck them in again, turn off the light and shut door. Twenty minutes later they make their second attack. “Mommy, mommy! I have to go to the potty!” screams my three old as she runs into the living room, which is nowhere near the bathroom. Of course right behind her runs my two year old. She always has to copy her big sissy. I am sitting on the couch writing my paper at this time, so I get up and redirect them to bathroom. This begins what I refer to as the battle of the potty. They will sit on the potty until the next morning if they have to. As long as they do not have to go to bed. Somehow when they sit on the toilet they conveniently do not have to go. Eventually I will pick them up off the toilet and drag them back to their beds. The biggest and most annoying thing about trying to put the little angels to sleep is they insist that they are not sleepy. This is usually their last plan of attack. Sometimes they will just say they aren’t tired, but sometimes they also add in that their tummies hurt. My oldest daughter likes to say she drank too much juice. I just laugh to myself in frustration. One last time I put them back in bed, tuck them in again, turn off the light and shut the door. When I say that I love my babies I mean it. The only thing I would change is their bedtime. If I had a choice they would just have an off switch like the light switch in their room. Now that they have had their juice, gone to the potty and I have successfully convinced them that are tired, they are asleep and I have finished my paper. ESSAY TWO Why I Play Drums From the influence of friends in my youth, to playing on a live stage in front of thousands, my life has had a big journey with the drums. They have helped my personal growth, and helped me maintain a healthy, happy lifestyle. They have repeatedly captivated my imagination. I love to listen to the drums, I love to watch them, and learning to play them has even helped me overcome depression. When I was young, I joined the school band by persuasion of my parents. They wanted me to play a brass instrument, so I picked the trombone. Although, it wasn’t what I really wanted to play, I wanted to play the drums. In band class the trombone section always sat in the back behind the woodwinds and higher brass, and right in front of the drums. There was never anything very impressive to hear coming from middle school percussionists, but I used to envy those kids nonetheless! Whenever I have the opportunity to see musicians play, I rarely watch anything but the drummer. The first time I recall every seeing someone play the drum set I was in the sixth grade. As a band class we took a field trip to the house of blues where we saw a group perform a tribute to blues music. I didn’t know why but all I could watch was the drummer. The way he moved, the sounds he made, it was unlike anything I had ever seen before! I was awesome! I still remember the beautiful turquoise colored drums he played on and how new and shiny his cymbals looked, unlike the cracked dirty ones we had in band class. Although still to me it was like watching someone breathe fire, or dunk a basketball, I knew I liked it but it never seemed like something that I could ever do. In high school it was common to hear someone play the snare drum in marching band or the drum set in jazz band. To hear someone play rock music, that was only for professionals I thought. Until I met my good friend Lee, and he played the drums. Not like I was used to hearing in band class though. Not in the marching nor the jazz sense, but in the style of heavy metal. I was sure there was nothing more impressive in the whole world than seeing someone play so fast with so much coordination. I would often spend hours watching videos of people playing my favorite songs on the drums so I could marvel at their talent. When I began to gain an interest in rock music, I paid special attention to the drums. Right about the time I entered middle school was the time bands like Linkin Park and Nickelback were becoming popular, and I picked them apart like Kinex pieces. I would listen to the music over and over again, isolating the guitar, bass, and drums in my head. None of them stood out to me more than the drums, I would often be beat boxing along to the drum part more often than singing the words! It was so fascinating how within the structure of the music, I could hear different sounds and instruments, playing individual parts in harmony to make something that sounded so cool. But even more fascinating, to me, was that within that musical structure was the drummer. Who is not only operating in line with the other musicians, but is in charge of his own array of sounds and instruments. Working together as one, to create the foundation for the music. Listening for the drums was and is still so much fun to me. It wasn’t until I was 15 that I finally got the opportunity to play the drums for myself. I had been going to a doctor to help with some depression I was having, and he suggested to me that I play the drums as a healthy outlet for my frustration. My parents finally broke down and bought a drum set in hope that it would help me. After that I was in heaven! It became much more than a hobby for me, it became my obsession. I would practice hour after hour, and day after day. It wasn’t long before I started taking lessons and began to improve in great strides. The depression I had once felt began to subside, for I found the self-confidence I needed in playing the drums. It has been years since then, but I still love to play. Last year I got to perform over a dozen times all over the Las Vegas valley, including the house of blues where I first saw the drum set played. No hobby or interest has given me such gratification as playing the drums have. I love to listen to them, I love to watch them, and they continue to lift my spirits and make me happy every day.